The History of OC Spray: From Ancient Pepper Powders to Modern Law Enforcement Carry
Pepper spray may feel like a modern law enforcement tool, but the basic concept behind it is much older than the aerosol canister officers carry today.
Long before modern OC spray, people understood that irritants could stop, distract, or create distance from an attacker. The idea was simple: temporarily overwhelm the eyes, nose, throat, and breathing response long enough to escape, restrain, or regain control.
One of the earliest historical examples often connected to pepper spray comes from feudal Japan. Japanese police and other individuals used tools known as metsubushi, meaning “eye closers,” to blow powders into a suspect’s eyes. Some versions reportedly used pepper or dust, delivered through small containers designed to direct the irritant toward the face. It was not OC spray in the modern sense, but the tactical idea was familiar: use an irritant to create a short window of control. [1]
Modern pepper spray, however, is a different story. Today’s OC spray gets its name from oleoresin capsicum, the pepper-derived resin that contains capsaicin. Capsaicin is the natural compound that gives chili peppers their heat. When delivered as an aerosol, stream, cone, foam, or gel, OC affects the eyes, skin, nose, throat, and respiratory system.
From Mace to OC: The 1960s and 1970s
In the United States, the story of modern defensive sprays begins in the 1960s with Chemical Mace.
Chemical Mace was not originally pepper spray. It was a handheld aerosol product built around CN tear gas, developed by Allan Lee Litman and marketed primarily to police forces. Mace notes that Chemical Mace was invented in 1965 and originally used phenacyl chloride, also known as CN, dissolved in solvents and packaged in a small aerosol can. [2]
During the unrest of the 1960s, Mace quickly moved from a personal protection concept into law enforcement and crowd-control use. Smithsonian Magazine describes how, within only a few years, Mace had shifted from a private protection product into a front-line tool for riot control during a turbulent period in American policing. [3]
OC spray developed along a slightly different path. Early OC products were initially associated with animal control, especially dog repellent. The product Halt, used by the U.S. Postal Service, helped establish the practical value of pepper-based sprays against attacking dogs. In 1977, Gardner Whitcomb of Luckey Police Products began selling an OC spray called Cap-Stun for use against human threats. [4]
Unlike CN-based Chemical Mace, OC was an inflammatory agent derived from peppers. It attacked the body differently and became attractive to law enforcement because it could create a strong compliance window without requiring impact strikes, hard empty-hand control, or immediate escalation to higher levels of force.
The 1980s and 1990s: OC Spray Becomes a Law Enforcement Tool
By the late 1980s and early 1990s, OC spray began moving into mainstream law enforcement. A major moment came when the FBI evaluated and approved pepper spray for use by agents. After that, agencies across the country began adopting OC spray as part of the less-lethal toolset. By 1990, reporting cited by Reason noted that more than 1,000 police departments had switched from traditional mace products to Cap-Stun following the FBI’s lead. [4]
By the early 1990s, the National Institute of Justice reported that OC was spreading quickly as a preferred use-of-force option for many agencies and officers. NIJ later noted that by 2013, an estimated 94 percent of police departments had authorized pepper spray, including all agencies serving jurisdictions with populations of 500,000 or more. [5]
The reason was practical. OC spray gave officers a tool between verbal commands and higher-force options. It could be carried on the duty belt and used at a distance. In many situations, it allowed officers to slow a fight down before it became a hands-on struggle.
Research also helped shape adoption. A 2000 NIJ-sponsored study of OC use in North Carolina found that issuing OC spray was associated with declines in injured patrol officers, suspect injuries from police use of force, and excessive-force complaints in one major study site, although the results were not uniform across every agency studied. [6]
A later NIJ-listed study found that OC sprays and conducted energy devices were associated with reduced odds of suspect injury in use-of-force events. That same body of research also noted that OC use could slightly increase the odds of officer injury, likely because of close-range contamination, blowback, or the circumstances in which OC is deployed. [7]
Modern OC Spray
Today, pepper spray remains one of the most recognized less-lethal tools in law enforcement, corrections, and public safety. It is used for subject control, defensive tactics, jail and prison operations, and crowd-control environments.
But modern OC use demands more than simply carrying a canister. Officers are expected to deploy OC with control, avoid unnecessary exposure, follow agency policy, and justify their use of force under increasing legal and tactical scrutiny. NIJ has noted that court decisions since 2000 have made clear that overuse or improper use of pepper spray can constitute excessive force. [5]
That shift matters. OC is not just a tool that needs to be available. It is a tool that needs to be accessible, secure, controllable, and repeatable under stress.
Yet while OC formulas, spray patterns, and agency policies have evolved, many OC carry methods have not. Officers are still relying on flap pouches, soft holders, awkward draw angles, and basic retention systems that were never truly designed around modern deployment demands.
That is the gap the OC Kit-A™ was built to address.
The Problem: OC Spray Evolved, but OC Carry Did Not
For all the advancement in OC formulas, spray patterns, canister sizes, and agency policies, the way officers carry OC has not evolved nearly as much.
Many officers still carry OC spray in a basic flap pouch, open-top holder, or soft nylon carrier. Those systems may check the box for equipment issuance, but they often fall short under real-world conditions.
Officers have to fight through snaps, flaps, weak retention, awkward draw angles, poor indexing, and reholstering issues. On a duty belt or MOLLE vest crowded with gear, traditional OC carry can become slow, inconsistent, or easy to overlook.
That matters because OC spray is often deployed in fast-moving situations. The officer may be giving commands, creating distance, controlling a suspect’s hands, managing bystanders, protecting a partner, or trying to avoid cross-contamination.
A pepper spray holster should support the officer during those moments, not make the draw more complicated.
A modern OC holster should do more than simply hold a canister. It should help with retention, indexing, access, deployment, reholstering, and actuator protection.
Where the OC Kit-A™ Comes In
The OC Kit-A™ was designed around that exact gap.
The OC Kit-A™ is a duty-grade OC spray retention and deployment system for department-issued MK-2 and MK-3 flip-top OC canisters. It is built for belt or vest mounting and is designed to improve how officers carry, index, access, deploy, and reholster OC spray under stress. The system uses a Level II Full Retention Holster and Spray Guard to help reduce fumbling, protect the actuator, support controlled deployment, and improve retention during movement. [8]
The system is also designed around compatibility. It works with MK-2 and MK-3 thumb-actuated flip-top OC canisters from major manufacturers, including Sabre and Defense Technology, without requiring agencies to change spray brands or retrain around a new canister platform. [8]
That is the real evolution: not replacing OC spray, but improving how officers carry and deploy it.
Pepper spray has gone from ancient irritant powders, to CN-based Mace, to modern OC formulations, to widespread law enforcement adoption. Now the next step is improving the interface between the officer and the tool.
Because in the field, access matters. Retention matters. Indexing matters. Reholstering matters.
The way OC is carried can influence whether it is used confidently, safely, and effectively when seconds count.
The OC Kit-A™ brings modern retention, control, and deployment to one of law enforcement’s most proven less-lethal tools.
[1] Metsubushi, historical Japanese “eye closer” tools used to blow powders such as pepper or dust into a suspect’s eyes. Source: Wikipedia, citing Secrets of the Samurai: The Martial Arts of Feudal Japan by Oscar Ratti and Adele Westbrook.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metsubushi
[2] Mace Brand, “From the CEO: Understanding Mace® Brand vs. ‘mace.’” Notes that Chemical Mace was invented in 1965 by Allan Lee Litman and originally used phenacyl chloride, also known as CN tear gas.
https://www.mace.com/blogs/pepper-spray-tips/from-the-ceo-understanding-mace-brand-vs-mace
[3] Smithsonian Magazine, “The Forgotten History of Mace, Designed by a 29-Year-Old and Reinvented as a Police Weapon.” Discusses the rise of Mace during the 1960s and its movement into law enforcement and riot-control use.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/forgotten-history-mace-designed-29-year-old-and-reinvented-police-weapon-180953239/
[4] Reason, “Pepper Spray’s Progressive Origins.” Discusses early OC products, Halt dog repellent, Cap-Stun, Gardner Whitcomb, and early police adoption following FBI evaluation.
https://reason.com/2011/12/01/pepper-sprays-progressive-origins/
[5] National Institute of Justice, “Pepper Spray: Research Insights on Effects and Effectiveness Have Curbed Its Appeal.” Notes widespread police authorization of pepper spray, legal constraints, court decisions since 2000, and concerns about exposure to officers and bystanders.
https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/pepper-spray-research-insights-effects-and-effectiveness-have-curbed-its-appeal
[6] National Institute of Justice, “Evaluation of Oleoresin Capsicum (O.C.) Use by Law Enforcement Agencies: Impact on Injuries to Officers and Suspects, Final Activity Report.”
https://nij.ojp.gov/library/publications/evaluation-oleoresin-capsicum-oc-use-law-enforcement-agencies-impact-injuries
[7] National Institute of Justice, “Effect of Less-Lethal Weapons on Injuries in Police Use-of-Force Events.” Discusses findings that OC sprays and conducted energy devices reduced the odds of suspect injury in use-of-force events.
https://nij.ojp.gov/library/publications/effect-less-lethal-weapons-injuries-police-use-force-events
[8] Prevail Tactical, “OC Kit-A™ | OC Spray Holster and Deployment System | MK-2/MK-3 Fit.” Product source for OC Kit-A™ features, MK-2/MK-3 compatibility, belt/vest mounting, retention, indexing, actuator protection, and deployment claims.
https://www.prevailtactical.com/products/oc-kit-a
[9] CDC, “Riot Control Agents.” General source for effects of riot-control agents on the eyes, mouth, throat, lungs, and skin. Useful if you want to add a health/effects paragraph.
https://www.cdc.gov/chemical-emergencies/chemical-fact-sheets/riot-control-agents.html
